


won't know until we try

by cjmasim



Category: Men's Hockey RPF
Genre: Aitch Gang, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Boston Bruins, Crack Treated Seriously, Established Relationship, Fix-It, Fluff and Humor, Kuraleap, M/M, Whipped Cream
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-11-27
Updated: 2018-11-27
Packaged: 2019-09-01 06:15:03
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,683
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16759558
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/cjmasim/pseuds/cjmasim
Summary: When Sean gets scratched ahead of their game against the Leafs, Danton convinces Bruce to change his mind.–or: the Bruins–Leafs game from 11/26/18, but with Sean Kuraly as second line center.





	won't know until we try

**Author's Note:**

> I don't normally write fix–it fics for losses, not even in the playoffs, but I was already pissed on Sean's behalf and got this idea shortly after Jake was hit in the head with Danton's shot. This fic is definitely not entirely serious.
> 
> This fic is dedicated to a lot of people, and you all know who you are! We've been craving Kureinen content for so long and it's finally here. Bless. Though this fic has a bit more Jake than originally intended, but I guess that's just my Brand tm. (Speaking of my brand, there's also a hint of Jake/Charlie in the background, naturally.)
> 
> The title comes from Tide by Bearings.
> 
> Disclaimer that this fic is entirely fictional, obviously. If you or someone you know personally is represented in this fic, it's probably best for both of us if you just turn back now.
> 
> Enjoy!

Sean isn’t too surprised when Bruce tells him he’s going to be scratched. He knows he hasn’t been playing at his best, especially at a time when it seems like half the team is injured and everyone else needs to step up. He gets it, really. Bruce is just doing what he thinks is best.

It sucks that he has to miss the game against the Leafs, though. In the short amount of time he’s been with the Bruins, they’ve become one of Sean’s favorite teams to play. Not because they’re an easy opponent – quite the opposite, actually. They always play hard, and despite what older fans say about the Habs, he knows their rivalry with the Leafs is the fiercest. Sometimes, when he’s feeling down about his play, he’ll watch highlights from Game 7 – both of them, actually, though he only played in one of them. 

But this isn’t the playoffs; it’s only November, and the Leafs are good in the regular season, especially so far this season. Sean would love to play against them, channel what’s left of his anger from that one goalie interference call and Lickgate and slide the puck past Andersen. Ideally, he’d get to Kuraleap over him, just for good measure, but the scoring is what matters most. 

Unfortunately, he hasn’t been doing a lot of that lately, so he isn’t playing. And that’s fine; it is what it is, and Cave’s a great guy who deserves his shot. So it’s fine. Sean’s just going to accept it and watch from the press box and not say a word to Bruce.

He isn’t counting on Danton’s reaction. He’s usually a pretty quiet guy, and when he was scratched last season, he didn’t complain. Sean had been upset on his behalf, but they hadn’t been together at the time, so he hadn’t felt it was his place to say anything. Even if it happened today, he isn’t sure that he would. Maybe if he were the captain or at least an alternate – indeed, the As did call Bruce out on playing Kampfer when he really doesn’t deserve a spot, or so Sean’s been told – but he trusts Bruce, and they have a good relationship. He isn’t exactly keen on calling him out anytime he makes an even slightly questionable decision.

Danton, apparently, is not as reserved as he’d like people to think. As soon as Sean tells him, Danton excuses himself, walking in the direction of Bruce’s office, and by the time he comes back, Bruce has announced that he’s decided to put Kuraly in instead of Cave, and that Sean’s going to be on the second line with Danton and Jake. 

“What the hell did you say to him?” Sean whispers to Danton once Bruce has left.

Danton shrugs. “Just told him that I didn’t agree with his decision, and that you’ve always played really well against the Leafs. He wasn’t impressed, but I offered to bet my next game on you, so if you don’t play well, we’re both getting scratched next game.”

“Why?” Sean is dumbstruck. He gets that Danton didn’t like the decision; had the roles been reversed, he knows he would’ve been frustrated, but it’s just one regular season game.

“Why not?” Danton says. “I believe in you. And the two of us on a line with Jake? We’re going to be so good out there.”

Sean smiles. “Well, you’re right about that.”

–

The game isn’t going horribly, but it’s not going especially well either. Sean’s line hasn’t done much; they haven’t been scored on, but they haven’t scored or even gotten any particularly close opportunities. Unfortunately, it’s 3–2 Leafs. At this rate, he knows he and Danton will be benched in the next game if they don’t step up.

They’re in the offensive zone, Sean concentrating on getting the puck away from Kapanen and over to Danton. He gets the puck and shoots it, seeing that Danton’s still open, but the shot goes slightly wide. It’s heading straight toward Jake, Sean realizes, and Jake doesn’t even see it. Without even thinking, Sean lets go of his stick, Kuraleaping as far as he can so that he puts himself in front of Jake. The puck hits his chest, and it doesn’t feel good, but had he not blocked it, it would’ve hit Jake right in the head.

He lands on top of Andersen, and gets called for goalie interference, but Bruce isn’t mad. They’ve dealt with enough injuries lately; they can’t afford another one.

They kill off the penalty without him, and when Sean gets out of the box, Jake is right there, passing the puck right to him as they skate into the offensive zone once again. Sean keeps the puck on his stick as he skates around the Leafs’ defensemen, and once he sees that Danton is open right in front of the net, he passes to him, and this time, Danton’s shot makes it. Sean skates over, Kuraleaping into his arms, and they celebrate the goal. It’s a tied game now with more than ten minutes left; they’re still in this.

Sean’s line is quiet the rest of the game, but the team is pumped, and sure enough, with just two minutes left in the game, Pasta scores off a great feed from Marchy, completing the hat trick. They hold off the Leafs for the rest of the game and end it with a sound 4–3 victory. It wasn’t their best game, but they won, and that’s all that really matters.

–

As soon as Sean’s stripped out of his pads, Jake is by his side, a can of whipped cream in hand. He’s grinning like a seven–year–old child who’s just discovered that he’s tall enough to reach the cookie jar, looking up at Sean as if he’s supposed to know exactly what’s on Jake’s mind. Sean isn’t sure he wants to know where Jake got the whipped cream.

“You saved my ass out there, bro,” Jake says, holding out the can for Sean to take. He takes it warily, shaking it to reveal that it is indeed full. 

"What is this?" Sean asks, even though the answer is obvious.

“It's a gift," Jake says. "Just have as much as you can possibly stand before the next game and trust me, you’ll be on fire. Maybe you’ll even score a hatty. Charlie and I use it all the time.”

“Thanks bro,” Sean says, laughing slightly. He still doesn’t fully understand Jake’s obsession with whipped cream, but he knows he doesn’t give out his whipped cream to just anybody, especially not on a road trip.

“No, thank you,” Jake grins. “I’m really glad I don’t have a concussion.”

“Too bad you already have irreparable brain damage,” Anders yells from a few stalls over, and really, he’s not one to talk.

“Now now, children,” Marchy chirps as he walks by, heading to the showers. 

–

Later that night, in the hotel room, Sean and Danton are alone for the first time since morning skate when Bruce announced that Sean was supposed to be scratched. Danton had been quiet in the locker room, and Sean knows he must feel guilty for what almost happened to Jake. 

“You know it’s not your fault, right?” Sean says once they’ve put down their bags and taken off their jackets and ties. 

“Yeah,” Danton sighs. “I know.”

“Good thing I was there to save you both, huh?” Sean says, smiling gently. “I still don’t really get why you did that, but I’m glad you did, so thank you. This whole game might’ve gone very differently if you hadn’t.”

“It was a risk, but it paid off, didn’t it?” Danton smiles back. “Maybe we’ll get more time on the same line, at least while Bergy’s still out.”

“We do have that chemistry,” Sean says.

“I don’t know,” Danton says, raising an eyebrow. “Don’t you think we should work on it a bit? Have some liney bonding time?”

“Without Jake, of course,” Sean says.

“Oh, definitely. I, for one, prefer to keep whipped cream out of the bedroom,” Danton says.

Sean remembers the can of whipped cream Jake gave him earlier, and realizes that Jake had definitely not just been trying to “elevate his game” or whatever.

“Fucking Jake,” Sean mutters, and bursts into laughter. It kills the moment a little, but Danton joins in, even as he doesn’t know what Sean’s actually laughing about. “You know that can of whipped cream he gave me earlier?”

Danton’s eyes widen, and he blushes as the realization hits him too. He starts laughing even harder.

Once they’ve both calmed down, Sean speaks again. “You know, I wouldn’t be opposed to trying it,” he says, trying to keep his voice as casual as possible.

Danton blushes even harder. “I mean – if that’s what you want…”

“Do you want to try it?” Sean asks.

Danton pauses, thinking, before nodding. “I haven’t thought about it before, but I guess it could be fun, so yeah, why not?”

“Great,” Sean says, reaching into his bag and retrieving the can. “We are definitely not telling Jake about this.”

“Oh, never,” Danton agrees.

–

As it turns out, Sean likes it a lot better than he ever imagined he would. Danton agrees, and tells Sean that, despite their agreement, he may as well thank Jake for the suggestion.

Jake doesn’t seem at all fazed by the confession, just nods knowingly at Sean. “You two were already a part of the aitch gang, of course, but you can’t be a premium member until you understand the true potential of whipped cream. So, congrats bro!”

He pulls Sean in for a hug, and he returns it, though he thinks it’s maybe a bit of an awkward situation to be hugging your bro in. 

“Wait,” Sean says once they pull apart. “If this is what you really think about whipped cream, what are your real thoughts on jam?”

Jake grins at him, winks, and walks away without saying a word. Sean figures he’s probably better off not knowing, anyway.

**Author's Note:**

> Feel free to follow me on [tumblr](http://www.cjmasim.tumblr.com/)!


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